After 11 years of serving fine wine and meals, the owners of a well-known wine bar and restaurant in the heart of Għargħur have decided to step away.

Rene and Sue Muscat, the husband-and-wife team behind the popular Cent'Anni Bistrot, announced their decision on social media last Sunday. “The time has finally come to take a step back and retire gracefully from the business we love so much,” they wrote.

Their last day will be January 31.

Rene Muscat, the 61-year-old face of the wine bar since its opening in 2014, told Times of Malta their age was a key consideration.

“Catering isn’t easy, and we aren’t that young anymore,” Muscat said. His wife, Sue, is 62.

Running an intimate establishment like theirs required constant physical presence, Muscat explained, and they have now reached a stage in life where they want to slow down. While the couple plans to retire from the restaurant business, they will continue with their wine import business, which Rene started before opening the restaurant.

Muscat recounted how he transformed the venue from what he described as “a little, rundown village bar” into a cosy wine bar. Over the years, it became a “home away from home” for patrons, a sentiment echoed in their retirement post comments.

Reflecting on their 11 years of business, Muscat recalled the many people who passed through their doors, from old friends to well-known personalities. He shared one particularly surprising visit from Hollywood director Ridley Scott, who visited a few months ago. 

The Gladiator 2 director came for dinner alone, "but I didn’t recognise him at the time,” Muscat said. “A few days later, a friend told me Scott had enjoyed his meal, and it then it occurred to me it had been him.”

Muscat also remembered some humorous moments, including one night when a large stray dog found its way into the restaurant kitchen during service.

Concerned for the dog’s safety as it was unchipped, Muscat took it home after closing at 2 am without telling his wife.

“She only discovered it in the morning when the dog started howling while I was still asleep,” he said. Adding to the chaos, they hosted 12 friends for lunch that same day.

The Muscats can now look forward to a mix of travel, relaxation, and managing their wine import business.

As for Cent'Anni, its future is still up in the air.

The couple said they are in talks for someone else to take over the restaurant but that nothing is set in stone.

“The future of Cent'Anni has yet to be decided,” Muscat said.

Since their announcement, bookings have poured in from people eager to visit the wine bar before it closes.

“People are shocked that we are stepping away, but we’ve had our fun over the years. Now it’s time for us to move on to our next chapter.”